Ask HN: 30 yr old+ Startup Founders

15 points by SABmore 14 years ago | 21 comments

Any successful 30+ startup founders out there? I'm 33 (considered a dinosaur by most startups) and just dipping my toe into the startup space, but am straddled with a fulltime job, mortgage, bills and a wife, so I'm finding it difficult to pursue my passion while balancing life and keeping the lights on. I realize that being in your 30s really isn't any different that any other time, but I assuming that byt then you have additional responsibilities that limit the amount of risk one can take on. I can't simply stop what I'm doing and put all of my eggs in one basket, and while I could pursue consulting work to free me from my job, it seems as getting that going would take up time, if not more than my current job. I'm looking for honest advice, tips, wisdom on how to make it work. Thanks in advance!

27182818284 14 years ago |

Genghis Khan went on to reign one of (the?) largest empires in history in his mid to late forties.

Not exactly what you are looking for, I know, but I hope I hope it gives you some encouragement.

sebandr 14 years ago |

I'm 52 - a real dinosaur, but I've been hooked on startups since the late 80s - and with few exceptions have never stopped. The drag for me is that when I was 30 they said I was too young - now I get the looks that I may be too old. All BS of course, because being a start up founder is all about commitment, risk, passion and flexibility. You have to have 1000% commitment not just for yourself but from your loved ones - if they're not on board with belt tightening and living off credit cards at times, with you working 18 hours a day - 7 days a week, with the inevitable ups and downs, high probability of failure and willing to hang in there in the bad moments ( because a great start up founder must maintain a positive and optimistic perspective to their team - translation: you're family will bear the brunt of pent up angst). Then this isn't for you. On the other hand, it's thrilling to be in the middle of a hot space, building your dream, exchanging ideas with bright people, understanding a market better than anyone else, most importantly the joy of learning new stuff and doing new stuff every day and of expanding your skills beyond what you thought you could do then do it. Notice I never mentioned money - if that's what you want, then stick with your job because it'll provide what you need. Jobs, Gates, Zuckerberg, etc, never ever mention that they do it for the money - it's never about the money.

mindcrime 14 years ago |

I know sorta how you feel... albeit not exactly. I'm over 30 (38, actually), but I'm still single with no wife, kids or mortgage. So I can be a little more cavalier in my approach to things, since no one is depending on me.

That said, I think you can still make a startup work if you want it bad enough, and depending on your (and your family's) appetite for risk. But if your SO isn't on-board with the required sacrifice and with the risk, it might not be such a great idea. Tough call, best of luck to ya!

sandroyong 14 years ago |

First, the age thing is just a number - let's get that out of the way. I'm up there too (I'm 'cough' 30+, too), wife, 3 kids, mortgage, etc. There is something to be said about wisdom - calculated risk vs 'reckless abandoment-type risk (this is not to imply that all 20+ startups are like this). I believe that added responsibilities in your 30's make you better at assessing risk in your personal life. Take that knowledge and intuition into your startup. How to make it work? Good question. Start with an understanding wife and kids.and finding a balance between your personal, work, and startup. It'd be nice to have longer days or not have to sleep so much. But, that's life...startups are never easy. But if your startup is worth it...go for it. It really boils down to time management. And, when you get to that stage where the startup has achieved momentum (cusp of getting funding, going public, or whatever that requires more of your time) re-assess your situation again because it's going to get harder not easier. If your startup has potential and you believe in it, fall back on that to drive yourself forward during those 'downtimes' when you question yourself about why you're doing this. In my case, I plug away at my startup for 3 reasons - my kids. Did I mention you have to have an understanding wife? Good luck.

mitrick2 14 years ago |

I was almost exactly where you are four years ago. 32, married, with two kids and one on the way, when I started my company four years ago. One of the most important things I did before making the jump was sit down with my wife, explain why I felt I needed to start the business (pursuit of a passion, happiness in career, etc...), and then we discussed at length the potential impact it would have on our lives together. This doesn't make it any easier, but it does help to set expectations and ensure you are going in it together with eyes wide-open.

Along the way, you are going to have to work your butt off to ensure the success of the business (no one else will care more about it than you), but its important to remember that starting your own business also creates some amount of freedom. No boss to ask for an hour or two off here and there. Pick your kids up from school, have a random lunch with your wife, work remotely while taking the family on vacation. If family is important, than a startup is actually a means to create more freedom in your life and spend quality time with them.

YMWV, but you need to find a way to make it work to pursue your passion. If you don't, you nor your family will end up happy :)

Good luck!

cannuk 14 years ago | |

This is awesome. It's hard when working a full time job and attempting a startup to think that at the point where your business is your full time gig, that the freedom will allow for opportunities you can't have with a 9 - 5. May I ask what business you started?

brk 14 years ago |

If you spend a disproportionate amount of time on HN, you can easily be led to believe the "typical" startup founder is an early-20's hoodie-wearing recent grad.

The reality is that starting a company in your 30's is probably the most common first-time startup founder age-range. It partly depends on market and business idea though. I wouldn't want to be a 38 year old guy pitching an idea for a social viral bar-games scoring app. But, for the sorts of ideas that tend to require bigger money and a more refined approach, I think I'd rather pitch that at 35 vs. 25 in today's market space.

Also think about hiring good talent in general (assuming you want to build a "business" and not an "app"), many people would rather work for an experienced CEO in their 30's, but the mid/early 20's set seems to have an edge on very refined "apps" (be it Android/iOS or small webapp) type of businesses, where 4 or 6 people may be able to makeup the core of the company for a significant amount of time.

Just my opinion, as a late-30's guy who has been rolling through various startups (my own and working for others) for about 18 years. YMMV.

leeHS 14 years ago |

This really hits home.

I'm 33, wife, son, well paying job. I'm also passionate about food and have 'just' launched a recipe scrapbook web application. It's been tough. Last night at 2am I was writing e-mails, and coding, while trying to rock our newborn son to sleep.

You mentioned risk. That's interesting. I'm by no means successful in my venture (yet!), but I've been able to get this far on about $100 and amazing support from my wife. So my risk has been on the extreme low side. Now I'm trying to drum up some interest, and marketing is new for me. So where do I go from here? Find a foodie co-founder who is awesome at hustling? Stay the course, try my best, and see where this goes? Quit my job and just go for it?! Not sure yet.

So I guess I'm just saying, go for it! Don't quite your job yet, get your wife on board, give yourself 6 months, and see what you can do! It's going to be TOUGH! But your passion should carry you through.

sebandr 14 years ago | |

Depending on what your business idea you should find folks that you mesh well with and who bring skills that you lack - you can't be everything to everyone so find experts that share your vision. If you need a sales or marketing guy, you can find them too - but be sure that's what you need. Know your market, know your product and then figure out how you'll make your business work - only then will you have a better idea of the sort of marketing, and sales folks you'll need. Start by reaching out to friends and trusted folks to leverage their smarts, reach out to their networks for help and build on that. Good luck - I love foodie stuff - sounds like a cool idea.

leeHS 14 years ago | | |

Thanks sebandr.

I didn't want to give a link to the site in my first comment, as it didn't seem appropriate. But if you're a fellow foodie, I'd love it if you could have a look and give me your thoughts.

mylifethroughfood.com

cannuk 14 years ago | |

It's really amazing when you think "I never hear about anyone that has made it, or is even trying to do this with wife/kids/mortgage..." and then someone posts on hacker news and all of a sudden, there is a support group.

sebandr 14 years ago | | |

That's kinda cool actually - a support group for people thinking of a start up - given that more and more folks see this as a viable option (and probably the way the US will launch into the next wave of innovation) - there will probably be a demand for places to go and just ask plain questions, get coaching, or just support when it's late and you think this is going nowhere and all you need is a pep talk. I'm game.

cannuk 14 years ago |

I wish I could offer you advice, however I am here to see what advice others offer :) I am 31 and am in the same boat. While I have heard it is true that most founders are in their 30s, I have not heard is how many of those founders have a wife, children etc. I would love to hear advice/stories from individuals in that situation.

dirkdeman 14 years ago |

Same here, 32, two kids, wife, mortgage, foodie (although that's not my occupation. Strange. There's a lot of foodies round here...).

I code in the nighttime when the kids (and wife) are asleep. For some reason, the progress I see actually gives me energy, it's the drag of going to work everyday that saps it. I'm lucky to have a wife that supports me in my ideas, I think it's paramount to discuss everything you do to her.

As of October 1, I lost my job due to the economy. This creates a lot of stress, but fortunately I get a reasonable severance pay from the government (I'm dutch). Although money is goint to be a bit tighter than we're used to, it could actually prove to be a blessing since I'll have a lot more time on my hands.

badclient 14 years ago |

Real Answer: the majority of startup founders.

SABmore 14 years ago |

Thanks everyone, encouraging so far. I'll be honest, one of the frustrations/fears is not being able to currently commit 100% of my time to my idea, which inevitably leads to it taking substantially longer (months) to get something out the door...in the mean time, I look on Techcrunch or HN and others has developed something similar in a matter of weeks and raised $$. If there is one thing I've learned, is that hard work does pay off...onward and upward.

sebandr 14 years ago | |

True - but unless your extremely lucky or well connected the probability of success is super low. Throwing together and app to find a sandwich shop is one thing - building a viable business plan and launching a business is entirely different and requires a lot of time to think, understand, research and evaluate to improve your chances for success. Use this time to do the research, talk to your prospective customers, observe and learn from potential competitors, it'll help you understand your market ( or if there even is one ) and find your niche. Once you have all this - at least you'll be better informed to make a decision to pull the trigger or not - at a minimum you'll be able to make a case for yourself to friends, family and potential investors. good luck

triggervb14 14 years ago |

hey SABmore, so my experience is very much the same as yours. Granted I was a little younger when I started (28) I was in the same boat, mortgage, wife and great job I didn't want to give up for nothing. So I decided I would make it work. At this point I should note I have been blessed with an amazing understanding wife who has been very patient over the years. My strategy was simple, dedication in the evenings and unlike many startups by a younger founder where fly by the seat of your pants, I made a very clear plan first which took over 2 months in the evenings. This way when I was ready to start development my work was very concentrated based on the plan I had developed. In addition this proved to be very beneficial when I brought on another developer. They could be working during the day without having to call me.

One thing I will say... do it, work your butt off and it will pay off in the end!

cannuk 14 years ago | |

Mind if I ask how successful you were? Were you able to go full time on your venture?